This invention relates generally to the field of shelters and more specifically to roofs and coverings for living spaces and outdoor areas.
Shelter is a basic human need. As mankind has evolved, shelters have also evolved, from the simplest caves to present day buildings of steel, concrete, and glass. While skyscrapers may stand out as crowning achievements of modem building design, most people continue to live in modest wood-framed homes. As the world's population continues to increase the demand for more housing also increases, yet the available supply of building materials such as lumber continues to decrease. Consequently, there is a growing need for housing alternatives that rely less on lumber and more on other types of construction materials. Replacing lumber with materials that would otherwise constitute waste products would have obvious environmental benefits. Further environmental benefits may be realized by optimizing both the efficiency and the usability of the spaces we build.
One alternative to wood-framed houses that makes use of a material that would otherwise constitute a waste product is straw bale houses. In a home built with straw bales, walls are assembled from stacked bales of straw held in place by re-bar that is secured in the foundation. The walls are enclosed by chicken wire with plaster on the interior and stucco on the exterior to protect the straw bales from the elements. Straw bale homes offer very good insulation, inexpensive construction, and use little lumber. They are also very fire and earthquake resistant. Unfortunately, straw bale homes still rely on conventional roofing systems when a pitch is necessary to shed water.
Prior art FIG. 1 illustrates a typical framing arrangement for a lumber truss roof 2 common to many wood-framed and straw bale homes. Besides the reliance on lumber, another disadvantage of this type of roof is the manner in which they are braced. Beams 4 for bracing the roof divide the interior space into numerous triangular regions. These triangular regions are not conducive for placing straw bales for ceiling insulation because the bales do not fit well into the comers and because it is difficult to move the bales around within the triangular regions. In addition, traditional pitch systems make it impractical to use the roof space for living area. Consequently, attic spaces enclosed by traditional lumber roofs, whether on straw bale homes or conventional wood-framed homes, commonly are poorly utilized.
Accordingly, what is desired is a roofing system that reduces the use of lumber, that is inexpensive and easy to assemble, that allows for the installation of straw bale ceiling insulation, and that creates a livable space that is open and aesthetically pleasing.